The unplanned statement came at the close of an otherwise resolute and powerful speech rallying the free world to unite in opposition to tyranny and support for Ukraine, which the White House raced to walk back as the Kremlin expressed outrage.
The president of the Council on Foreign Relations, Richard Haass, expressed his alarm on Twitter that Biden had just broadened US war objectives by advocating for regime change.
According to Politico, a top Biden official, possibly Secretary of State Antony Blinken, should immediately contact their Russian counterpart and explain that Biden’s remark does not reflect US policy.
‘Because if he believes he has everything to lose, he’ll believe he has nothing to lose,’ Haass said, Biden’s remark might lessen Putin’s interest in compromise and raise his inclination to escalate in Ukraine.
Biden’s aides rushed to claim that he hadn’t been pushing for an abrupt change of administration in Moscow before he could even board Air Force One for the voyage back to Washington.
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesperson, promptly slammed Biden, saying that it is not up to the president of the United States or the Americans to decide who will continue in power in Russia.
Biden’s worrisome off-the-cuff remark comes just 24 hours after the White House scrambled to clarify the president’s previous uncomfortable remarks suggesting that US forces would deploy to Ukraine, and had already done so.
Biden has stated repeatedly that no troops would be sent into Ukraine under any circumstances during Putin’s invasion, fearing that it will devolve into World War Three and develop into a long-term military campaign similar to Afghanistan.
Biden drew a clear line between democracy and persecution in his furious speech on Saturday, frequently attacking Putin and accusing him of deceit.
